Annealing apparatus



'2 sheets-sheet 1` DeC- 15; 1936u w. H. NlcKERsN ANNEALING APPARATUS Filed sept. 21, 1935 Dec. 15, 1936. W, H, 'MCKERSON 2,064,682

ANNEALING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 2l, 1.955 2 Sheets-SheetI 2 f1 il 14%@ Patented Dec. 15, 1936 STATE OFFICE 3 Claims.

The immediate object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus by which har-dened steel shoe shank stieners having integral prongs may be annealed at those parts only which comprise the prongs and without diminishing the hardness and spring temper of the body of the article. Shank stifeners of this character are described in the pending applications for United States Patent of Stacy M. Nickerson, filed December l, 1934, Serial No. 755,594, and file-d April 3, 1935, Serial No. 14,453. The materials of which such stiifeners are made are susceptible to hardening and tempering by heat treatment to a desirable condition of resilient stiffness; but if the integral prongs of such stiffeners have the same degree of hardness they are too brittle to be clinchedkwith uniform success in the sole of a shoe and are liable either to break off or fail to curl over at the point when attempt is made to clinch them. Hence the prongs are annealed to a condition of softness permitting them to be curled over Without the liability of breakage, before being sold for use. The machine or apparatus which I have devised for carrying the foregoing object into effect, and have shown in the drawings herewith furnished, is provided with means for creating zones of heat and means for propelling pronged shank stiffeners of the character described in the paths which bring their pronged ends into such Zones of heat, and retain them there for a long enough period to soften the prongs; and the machine also includes means to limit the heating effect to the prongs and adjacent ends of the stiffener.

While my primary object is as here above stated, I would have it understood that the protection I claim is not necessarily limited to a machine combination capable of accomplish ing only that object and no other. On the contrary, the invention includes all aspects and subcombinations of the novel features of disclosed' apparatus, and equivalents thereof, for any purposes and uses to which the same may be successfully applied. 45 Defining now the specific machine depicted in the drawings, but without thereby restricting my invention to narrower limits than those indicated in the foregoing statements and the appended claims, I am first describing the drawings.

50 In the drawings,-

Figure l shows a side elevation of the machine.

Figure 2 sh-ows a plan View of the machine. 55 Figures 3 and 4 show detail cross sections taken on lines 3 3 and 4-4, respectively, of Figure l, and drawn on a larger scale.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of parts of the machine at the point where the ends of the shank stiffeners are rst brought into the heating zone.

Figure 6 is a perspective View of a pronged shank stiffener after undergoing the treatment performed by the machine.

Like reference characters designate the same parts wherever they occur in all the figures.

The operating parts are supported on the frame work which is here shown as consisting of two parallel longitudinal members Ii), made of angle irons, connected cross members II and I2 at opposite ends of the longitudinals, and legs I3, it and braces I5, I6 secured to each longitudinal. The righthand end of the machine (with respect to Figures 1 and 2) is the loading end and comprises a supporting rail or track I1 and a limit or guide bar I8, at each side of the longitudinal d middle line. The rails or bars l'I and I8 at each side are connected together by bolts I9 and spaced apart from one ano-ther by intermediate washers or sleeves 2t surrounding the bolts I9. Brackets 2l support each outer bar I8 and are supported in turn by the frame in a manner later described.

These supporting and guiding rails lead to heating means or furnaces which are organized to deliver heat in narrow Zones exten-ding parallel to one another lengthwise of the frame work for a distance which, in conjunction with the speed of feeding of the articles to be annealed, produces the required heating effect on such articles. Each furnace or heat generator comprises a tube 22 adapted to receive and convey an inflammable gas or vapor and pierced with a row of holes 23 along one side, which holes have suitable diameter to enable the gas escaping from them to support flames when ignited. The diameter and spacing of these gas outlet orifices may be of any desired values, determined accordingto well understood principles, which will produce the desired heating effect and the desired continuity or gradations of temperature throughout' the length of the tubes, having regard to the character of gas or vapor employed, the pressure under which it is supplied, and the temperature required to be imparted to the articles operated upon.

The gas tube is supported on a series of bed blocks 24 and clamped between baffle plates 25 and 26, one of which is connected directly to a lip or flange 2l of the bed block and the other to a bracket 28 which in turn is secured to the bed block; all as shown in Figure 4. The bale plates extend throughout the length of the gas tube, or at least so much of it as contains jet orifices, and make tangent contact with the tube at opposite sides. They preferably converge somewhat upwardly, the plate 25 (which is at the side of the tube toward the middle line of the machine) being upright and the opposite plate inclined toward it; and the tube 22 is placed preferably so that the jet oriiices are directed on an inclination toward the plane of the baffle plate 25. The upper edges of these plates are nearly at the same level, but the outer plate 26 extends enough above the inner plate to serve as a gauge or guard to prevent outward displacement of the adjacent end of the shank stiiTener under treatment. The plates together confine the burning gas to a zone limited by the width of the slit between their upper edges. They also absorb and dissipate such heat from the flame as is not directly carried away by the rising gases.

The inner rails il at the loading end of the machine and the inner baffles 25 of the furnaces support the shank stiffeners S undergoing treatment. Such stiffeners are strips of sheet steel having great enough carbon content to be susceptible of hardening, which have been shaped with a longitudinal and transverse arched formation and cut adjacent to their ends to form integral tapered prongs P. After having been so cut and shaped while in soft condition the shank stilleners have then been hardened and tempered, and when brought to the treatment of this apparatus are suitable for use in shoes except that the prongs are too hard and brittle. But after passing through the apparatus the shank stiffeners emerge with their prongs so annealed and softened that they may be bent without breaking. Incidentally the material adjacent to the prongs is annealed also. The annealed portions are represented in Fig. 6 by the shading applied to the ends of the shank stiffener there depicted.

The rails of the loading end are located to support such stiffeners in a transverse position with their ends between the outer or guard rails I 8 and their prongs in the space between the adjacent rails l1 and I8, While resting adjacent "to their pronged ends on the rails I1, as indicated by the broken line representation S1 of such a sti'fener in Figure 5. From the loading part of the machine the stiffeners pass to the furnaces or heating zones, where they are supported on the upper edges of the baille plates 25 and their ends (including their prongs) overhang the spaces between the baille plates at each side of the machine. The outer baille plates extend across the ends of the stii'leners and, although ordinarily not touching them, are potential guards preventing any considerable displacement of the stilleners to either side.

The inner baille plates prevent contact of the ame with any part of the shank stiffeners except their overhanging ends. rllhus even though the ends of the stiileners may be brought to a red heat during their passage through the Zones of fire, the annealing eiect is limited approximately to those portions of the stiffeners between their extremities and the points at which the stiieners make contact with the inner baffle plates.

The shank stiffeners are propelled by two conveyor chains 29 and 3D which pass around sprocket wheels 3| and 32 at the loading end of the machine, and also around sprocket wheels 33 and 34 at the delivery end. The upper stretches of these chains pass close to the inner baille plates of the two heaters, and are supported, through a part at least of their length, suiicient to prevent too much sagging, by horizontal plates or strips 35 which rest on the lips 21 of the bed blocks 24 and are embraced between the inner baille plates 25 and uprights 36 secured to the inner faces of the bed blocks.

The links of these chains carry pins or fingers 3l which rise to a height suiiicient to engage and push the shank stiileners resting on the supporting rails I1 and baille plates 25. The stiffeners are not carried by these chains; but are pushed by them while resting on other supports. A suitable construction of chain link is shown in detail in Figure 5, each link having a hook 38 at one end which makes a hinged interlock with a bar on the adjacent edge of the next link. In their middle parts the links have a solid portion of suillcient thickness to receive and hold the pins rigidly. The links are considerably longer than the width of the shank stiileners, whereby suilicient space is provided between adjacent pins to receive the stiieners without requiring particular care on the part of the attendant who loadsI the machine to ensure correct placement.

An electric motor 39 drives the chains through a belt 40, pulley 4I, worm 42 on the shaft of this pulley. and worm wheel 43 secured to a shaft 44 to which the sprocket wheels 33 and 34 also are secured; the other sprocket wheels being secured to a shaft which turns idly. The shaft of the warm 42. and pulley 4I is supported by a bracket 45 which is secured to one of the longitudinal members of the frame work.

Shank stiffeners vary in length by as much as one-half inch, or more, between the shortest and longest sizes. In order to accommodate the different grades and ensure their symmetrical and proper location with respect to the heating means, the supporting rails and heating means at one side of the machine (inthis case the rear side with respect to Figure 2), are adjustable transversely. For this purpose the brackets 2i and bed blocks 24 which support the rear rails and heater are secured to a bed plate or strip 41 which rests on the rear longitudinal frame member. The bearing blocks 43 and 49 for ends of the shafts 44 and 45, respectively, are also secured to this bed plate. Adjusting screws and 5| are threaded into the bearing blocks 48 and 49, respectively, and are confined against endwise movement by notched brackets 52 secured to and rising from the adjacent underlying longitudinal frame member. Thus by turning these screws in one direction or the other,

the bed plate with its supported guides etc. is

moved to front or rear. The brackets and bed blocks for the guides and heater at the other side of the machine are immovably fastened to the frame, being secured to a bed plate 53 which in turn is secured to the frame. The chain 3U confined between the plate 25 and uprights 36 of this adjustable assemblage is moved with the assemblage, and in order to maintain the necessary alinement between this chain and its sprockets 32 and 34, the latter are equally ad- 54, secured to them by set screws as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, which flank the shaft bearings 55 and 55, and these bearings are Vsecured immovably to the frame.

Gas is supplied to the pierced tubes by a pipe 51 which is connected to the non-adjustable jet tube by a rigid elbow 58 and to the adjustable jet tube by a flexible pipe section 59. Both jet tubes are, of course, closed at the end remote from their receiving end so that their only outlets for gas are the jet orices 23.

Machines containing the principles of that above described may be made in a wide variety of dimensionsand proportions. The length of the gas jet tubes, the intensity of the flame, and the rate of travel of the propelling ngers are such that the prongs are brought to a dull red heat and then withdrawn from the flame before they have become burned or overheated. After leaving the heating zones the shank stiffeners are carried by the pins over the sprockets 33 and 34 whence they drop into a receptacle in which they are allowed to cool gradually. I have found that with a iame zone about three feet long and a feeding speed of about six feet per minute, so that the pronged ends of the shank stieners remain in the heating Zones about one-half minute, satisfactory heating eifects are obtained and a sufciently rapid production is obtained. If the propelling pins are half an inch apart (and they may be closer together than this), the maximum production rate is at least 144 units per minute. This rate is as fast as a single perator feeding the machine by hand can maintain comfortably over extended periods. Thus the speed of feeding the machine is the factor which practically determines the length of the heating zones. They can be made of suitable length to accommodate any other practicable feeding speed.

The heating means is not necessarily limited to gas but may be anything substantially equivalent, and may be used with, if necessary, an appropriate modication in the dimensions and .proportions of the parts, speed of travel of the work pieces, etc., according to the principles herein set forth.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent ist- 1. A heat generator for annealing purposes comprising a tube adapted to contain inflammable gas or Vapor, having a row of jet orifices along one side, baiiie plates tangent to the tube at op-posite sides of the row of jets, arranged to confine the products of combustion and form a slot between their edges through which the products of combustion escape, and supporting means to which said baiile plates are secured and by which, in conjunction with the plates, the tube is clamped in place.

2. An apparatus for annealing the pronged ends of hardened steel shank stiifeners for shoes comprising a supporting structure including two separated parallel longitudinal members, bed blocks mounted in longitudinal alinement on each of said members, tubes supported on the bed blocks of each member in parallel with one another, bale plates secured to the bed blocks of each member at respectively opposite sides of the tube supported on the bed blocks of the respective member, the baiiie plates extending longitudinally of the tube kand being relatively inclined convergently to one another above the tube and in engagement with the latter whereby to secure the tube on the bed block, the tube being adapted to convey inflammable fluid and having burner outlets directed toward the space between the baffle plates, the inward members of each pair of baflie plates being separated from one another by a distance shorter than the length of the shank stiffener to be treated, and conveyer means organized to propel lengthwise of the machine shank stiffeners supported by the inner baffle plates.

3. In an annealing machine, a heating furnace comprising a supporting structure, a tube adapted to convey inilammable uid, said tube resting on said supporting structure in a substantially hori- Zontal position, and baie plates secured to said supporting structure at respectively opposite sides of the tube, extending lengthwise of the tube and above the tube convergently toward one anN other, being secured in tangent contact with the tube whereby to position and secure the tube in place on the supporting structure, and being spaced apart from one another at their upper edges, the tube having orifices in its upper portion directed toward the space between the upper edges of the baliie plates.

WILLIAM H. NICKERSON. 

